Two years ago, after surveying Osaka prefectural boards of Education, the General Union found that 23 city boards of education were employing illegal ITAKU (subcontracting) contracts to supply their schools with Assistant English Teachers (ALTs).

The union publicized this to the Osaka Labour Bureau and the boards were ordered to stop. Responding to a survey sent this autumn by the General Union to all the city boards of education in Aichi, no fewer than 16 boards replied “not HAKEN (dispatch) but ITAKU”, admitting their own involvement in illegally outsourcing lessons. This reply, sent directly to the General Union, has become definite proof of something that ought never to happen: the outsourcing of public education. The union submitted documents to the Aichi Labor Bureau which show Tokai city Board of Education is violating the Dispatch Law and the Employment Security Law through the use of illegal ITAKU contracts and urged the Labour Bureau to survey all boards of education in Aichi Prefecture. Finally, a visit was made to the Aichi Prefectural Board of Education. The union let them know that as the supervising board of education for the prefecture, they were responsible for allowing illegal ITAKU contracts. The prefectural board admitted that they had “just received a notice about that issue in September from the Education and Labor Ministries” (sent as a result of union negotiations with the government) and promised to investigate. Our activities were covered in all the major newspapers, both in English and in Japanese. The Dispatch Law is being badly abused by these boards of education and dispatch companies. Together, let’s take a clear stand for good jobs and against the casualization of labour and outsourcing of public education.